Poland knows about Russian ‘humanitarian convoys’. It didn’t let one in.

Grzegorz Kostrzewa-Zorbas, Polish journalist and former diplomat, writes that Poland has also been through a ‘humanitarian convoy’ crisis.  It came through it unscathed by refusing to allow the convoy in.  Georgia was less fortunate.

 

Kostrzewa-Zorbas explains that the Soviet tactics used in 1991 to get into Poland through camouflage, distortion of reality and psychological pressure were similar to those now seen in Ukraine.  it would be easier, he suggests, to counter what he calls the Russian military operation “humanitarian convoy” if politicians, as well as public opinion in Ukraine, in the EU and NATO remembered that the Soviet Union tried the same thing on with Poland and that Poland won.

 

The Soviet Union was ignoring Poland’s demands made in September 1990 to withdraw Soviet troops from its territory.  In retaliation, Poland blocked the evacuation through its territory of Soviet forces from former GDR [East Germany]. This put the USSR in danger of breaching its agreement to remove its troops from Germany following the latter’s unification.

 

The strategy worked, and quickly at that.  The author’s implied cause and effect in saying that therefore Poland has no Russian army, but is in NATO and the EU could probably be argued, however Poland certainly withstood Soviet pressure with style.

 

The Soviet government announced that a huge convoy of ‘humanitarian aid’ for people in the USSR was being sent via Poland from the former East Germany.  This convoy would be made up of 200 Soviet military trucks accompanied by armed soldiers under military leadership. This was said to be the first of hundreds of such convoys. 

 

Poland stated that it would not allow an armed military column disguised as a humanitarian convoy. The Soviet communist party official paper Pravda then accused it of a lack of Christian love for its neighbour and Soviet diplomacy went all out to present Poland as heartless and cruel.  The ploy appeared to be working with  western diplomats, media, churches and other organizations coming out in defence of the poor suffering Soviet people to whose plight Poland was supposedly indifferent.

 

Poland did not back down.  It offered to allow the so-called humanitarian aid to be transported by Polish railway as cargo with no soldiers, and no military status. The author said that at that point the convoy disappeared, and that it’s not even certain whether it actually existed. “Only the Soviet Army existed for certain”.

 

Russia’s so-called ‘humanitarian convoy’ disappeared from site on Wednesday after Kyiv made it clear that it would not allow the trucks to pass into Ukraine without being checked by Ukrainian and International Red Cross officials and reloaded.  It would be nice to see this as a repetition of the Polish experience, unfortunately the analogy with Georgia in 1993 seems more immediate.  On that occasion Russia used just such a convoy to get military supplies into the Akhazian city of Tkvarcheli, which Georgian military forces were holding under siege.  Russia also used rhetoric about humanitarian concerns to justify its war with Georgia in 2008.

 

The near three hundred military trucks painted white were supposed to be heading to the Kharkiv oblast border crossing, however whether this was ever genuinely planned as the border crossing point seems doubtful.  The trucks’ whereabouts on Wednesday night are unclear, though it seems likely that they will try to cross the border into Ukraine in the Luhansk oblast.   

 

It is very much to be hoped that satellite pictures are recording exactly what is happening with these trucks and their load, and that even if the information is not made public, it will be communicated to those world leaders who may still have levers of influence on Russia.  Whatever the latter is playing at, this has long ceased to be a game. 

Macabre Convoy: Cargo 200 from Ukraine to Russia

There is more and more evidence that Russian soldiers are fighting – and dying – on Ukrainian territory, and that the so-called ‘humanitarian convoy’ may have been used to take the dead back to Russia, including paratroopers from Pskov killed near Luhansk

 

A day of mourning has been declared in the Russian city of Pskov on Aug 26.  This comes five days after the Ukrainian armed captured two armed personnel carriers and reportedly discovered documents identifying men as paratroopers from the Pskov airborne brigade No. 74268.  It has long been known that a large number of Russian mercenaries, as well as some supporters of the Russian neo-fascist ideologue Alexander Dugin are fighting against the Ukrainian army. This, however, was the first serious evidence that Russian military personnel are also involved. 

 

Reports at the time, such as Kyiv Post’s “Ukraine gets new evidence of Russian soldiers fighting on its turf” were vehemently denied by Russia’s defence ministry, though no credible explanation appears to have been offered for the large number of documents found.  These included the passport of Nikolay Krygin from Pskov and a journal with the names of other soldiers presumably also engaged in the military action.   

 

The information provided in a blog by Yelena Vasilyeva at Ekho Moskvy has all been reported by other sources, including Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov.  In her article entitled “Cargo 200 from Ukraine to Russia”, Vasilyeva notes that the authorities are claiming that several paratroopers from the Pskov airborne division were killed by stepping on a mine during training at the shooting range near Pskov.  There are only rumours about the number of men killed, some say ten, others fifteen.  

 

The dates don’t add up

 

The Minister of Defence Sergey Shoygu is reported to have gone to Pskov on Aug 22.   Information about the deaths of the Pskov paratroopers came after this date, reason to believe that paratroopers had been in eastern Ukraine, and reports that a large number of women in Pskov were in black – before his visit. 

 

Shoygu was expected to take part in a ceremony handing out the Suvorov order to members of a Pskov paratrooper division.  

 

The Suvorov Order is awarded for military action.   Whether this was action in eastern Ukraine or in the Crimea is not clear, but it was not for helping farmers with the harvest.  Vasilyeva is adamant that the order cannot be awarded in peacetime.  President Vladimir Putin’s decree No. 571 from Aug 18, 2014 regarding the awards, she says, “is official documentary confirmation that Russian Federation military forces have launched and are waging war against Ukraine on its territory.”

 

Vasilyeva writes that most people in Pskov, and in other cities, are so brainwashed that they are convinced that Ukraine has been destroyed, bombed to hell by the Ukrainian military with the help of the Americans and NATO.  They are genuinely grateful to Putin believing that he has not brought Russian soldiers into Ukraine and “has saved thousands of innocent lives and Russian soldiers”. 

 

Vasilyeva reports that the bodies of paratroopers have been returned to Pskov in white KAMAZ trucks.  The only white Russian military trucks are those which gained world attention over the last weeks when Russia announced that it was sending a ‘humanitarian convoy’ to Ukraine.  Not only were the contents of many of the trucks not checked, but the trucks entered Ukraine illegally and were accompanied only by Kremlin-backed militants.  As a likely load on their way back, “freight 200” [the code number for bodies] had seemed possible.  Vasilyeva writes that information finally started seeping through all social networks, despite efforts by the security service to remove posts.  According to the author, the morgue in Rostov (Russia) is overfilled with bodies. 

 

A Facebook group has been formed entitled  “Cargo 200 from Ukraine to Russia” on which people try to gather all information available about contracted and conscripted soldiers killed in Ukraine.

 

The starkest message reads: “Russian: Is your son, brother, friend serving in the army, especially the paratroopers.  CONTACT HIM URGENTLY!  MAYBE HE’S ALREADY BEEN KILLED?  After all the Russian army is so very definitely “not fighting” on Ukrainian territory!.”   

 

Is there proof? Incontrovertible evidence is always difficult to find and none of the details above can be confirmed.  They do, however, coincide with numerous reports, together with video footage, from witnesses in Ukraine.  These are backed up by Polish television and the viewings by many journalists who were following the so-called humanitarian convoy, including two UK journalists who saw military vehicles cross the border. 

 

The use of “military personnel” has also been confirmed by NATO and the USA.  Neither they nor Germany and France seem in a hurry to broadcast this too loudly, doubtless fearing the consequences.

With a number of tanks reliably reported to have crossed into Ukraine on Monday morning,

Ukrainians, Poles and the Baltic republics are, on the contrary, all too well aware of the consequences of continued western failure to do more than express strong concern.  

Putin wants to open “second front” by Sea of Azov

The activities of terrorists and Russian soldiers on the Sea of Azov Coast in Ukraine are evidence of Putin’s desire to create a corridor from the Donetsk People’s Republic  (DNR) to Russia in order to rescue the terrorist republic.

 

On Ukraine’s Independence Day, Putin’s terrorists reported “significant progress” on the front. In particular, Putin’s mass media widely distributed reports on the capture of Severodonetsk in the Luhansk Oblast and the village of Telmanovo in the Donetsk Oblast, as well as the advance on Mariupol and Novoazovsk.

 

Subsequently, the ATO (Anti-Terrorist Operation) press center denied this information. However, the terrorist’s attempt to become more active is real. Specifically, an attack on the village of Olenivka has been reported, which is on the H20 highway  that connects Donetsk and Mariupol. At the same time, Russian troops from Russian territory fired on the border crossing point of Novoazovsk and Amvrosiyivka.

 

In fact, access to the Sea of Azov in the Novoazovsk and Mariupol area is vitally important for the DNR terrorists because it enables them to take advantage of yet another gap in the Ukrainian-Russian border — both on land (Novoazovsk checkpoint) and by sea. If the terrorists secure their hold on the Azov coast, Putin will be able to deliver DNR reinforcements directly by sea from occupied Crimea.

 Despite the fact that large sections of the border are not under Ukraine’s control and are being used to supply the Luhansk People’s Republic (LNR), the Donetsk terrorists are almost cut off from Russian supplies.

 

However, it is more likely that today’s announcement on progress in gaining access to the Sea of Azov are more wishful thinking than reality. Similar declarations are intended to spoil Independence Day celebrations for Ukrainians, to raise the morale of the terrorists, whose chances to hold on to conquered territory without direct Russian military intrusion are still rather bleak, and to demonstrate to average Russians, who believe only their own media, that the state of affairs in the “Novorossiya” project is not that bad. The last reason is particularly relevant in light of the Russian scandal regarding the destruction and disappearance of the Pskov paratrooper division in the Donbas.

 

 (Russia’s Pskov Airborne Assault Division was destroyed on August 21 by the 24th Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Shtorm battalion from Odesa — Ed.)

 

It is also worth noting that there is no good evidence currently that Mariupol is under threat of terrorist occupation. The entire course of the war in the Donbas has progressed according to the same scenario. First a city, unable to defend itself due to a demoralized and disloyal police, would be seized with the help of Russian mercenaries and terrorists. Then terrorists would occupy the seized territory and fend off advancing ATO forces as much as possible while destroying local residents and infrastructure. The only thing that still enables the terrorists to hold on to their positions is the constant flow of Russian equipment and manpower and the shelling of Ukrainian forces from across the border.

 

However, the situation in the Donbas has changed somewhat over the past several months. The local population, which initially supported DNR and LNR, has understood exactly what  the “Russian Spring” brings to the Donbas: murders, kidnappings, torture, robbery, hunger and poverty. Therefore, it is unlikely that the terrorists, who are being squeezed from practically all sides and who have been fighting back all this time while hiding behind civilians, would have the capabilities to fundamentally change their tactics and deploy a massive offensive to take control of new cities, where residents now definitely do not support them and would do everything possible to prevent their arrival.

 

On August 25, Ukrainian  media, citing a Ukrainian border guard, reported on the intrusion of Russian military equipment near Novoazovsk. ATO spokesman Oleksiy Dmytrashkivskyi does not yet have confirmation for this information.

 

Meanwhile, the deputy commander of the Azov  defense battalion Ihor Mosiychuk stated that fighting is taking place near Novoazovsk and that terrorists have received reinforcements from Russia. He believes the militants are mounting an offensive on Novoazovsk and Mariupol.

 

Later, the ATO press center confirmed that a column of Russian armored vehicles attempted to break through in the vicinity of the Shcherbak-Novoazivsk population centers, but that they were largely blocked. At the National Security and Defense Council it was announced that ATO forces are controlling the road between Novoazovsk and Mariupol.

 

According to the National Guard, ATO forces destroyed two terrorist tanks near Novoazovsk.

Dmitry Tymchuk: Russia continues to amass troops to the border including sabotage and reconnaissance groups

According to the operational data of Information Resistance, Russia continues to amass troops in the border areas near the Ukrainian border.

 

On the territory of the Russian Federation and Transnistria on the morning of August 25th near the border with Ukraine there are about 22.5 thousand Russian troops. Overall, including the occupying forces in Crimea, the number of Russian groups is up to 47 thousand. Persons.

 

Moreover, [there has been a] transfer of Russian units in the past few days from the north-eastern border areas (across from the Chernihiv, Sumy, and Kharkiv oblasts [regions]) in the Rostov Oblast of the RF [Russian Federation], toward the operational direction of Donetsk.

 

Over the past three days, 5 Russian sabotage and reconnaissance groups were transferred from the territory of Russia into Ukrainian territory. Also, the arrival in the border areas of Russia, across from Amvrosiivka (Donetsk region), no less than 8 DRG’s [sabotage and intelligence groups] have been recorded. In addition to small arms, the subversive groups are armed with MANPADS.

 

In Crimea, the training of fighters in local landfills for further transfer to the Donbas continues. Some of these groups are being trained under training programs with a specific focus on mine-disruptive matters and the use of MANPADS.

Lenin-Free Ukraine: Soviet-era monuments topple as Ukrainians reject symbols of totalitarian past

Semenchenko plans to organize nationwide guerrilla movement

Semen Semenchenko, commander of the Donbas Battalion, wrote on his FB page that they will open a Call Centre of the Civic Committee for the organization of a guerilla movement in Ukraine.

 

He said that there will be a general meeting of leaders from different oblasts (regions) and a press conference will be held after the first group of leaders has been formed. Semenchenko promised to provide instructors and guerrilla training camps.

 

“Our country is in danger! I appeal to everyone who loves Ukraine to unite and prepare for civil war. This is the only way to stop the horde, sweep it off the pages of history and into the fires of eternal damnation.” wrote Semenchenko.

 

He asks leaders of local self-defense units, paramilitary organizations, patriotic associations from all over Ukraine, and concerned citizens to contact the Call Centre.

 

“Let us unite, train combat engineers, bomb technicians, snipers and paramedics, form and assign subversive groups, and develop defense strategies for our cities and villages.” added the Donbas commander.

 

Semen Semenchenko asked the President of Ukraine, the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, the Prime Minister, heads of security and law enforcement institutions, and government officials to support his initiative.

 

“Don’t be afraid of panic! We are not a nation of alarmists. Be open and start preparing the country for guerrilla warfare. Indeed, perhaps then it won’t even happen.” asserts Semenchenko.

 

On Independence Day, Semen Semenchenko wished Russian mercenaries a speedy capture.

Putin’s former advisor on Poroshenko in Minsk: Don’t give up Donbas

Illarionov: If President  Poroshenko agrees to give up Donbas to Putin in return for peace, there will be catastrophic consequences for the Ukrainian state

Economist Andrei Illarionov, a former advisor to Vladimir Putin, thinks that Putin is preparing for talks with Petro Poroshenko on August 26 in Minsk by increasing his military presence in Donbas.

 

President Vladimir Putin of Russia wants to convince the Ukrainian leadership to recognize ‘Novorossiya’ in exchange for a cessation of military hostilities, said economist Andrei Illarionov, a former advisor to the president of the Russian Federation, in a commentary in Gordon.

 

“After the Minsk talks, Putin expects a compromise from Poroshenko’s side. Putin is now ramping up military intervention and attacks with the aim of convincing Ukraine that it will be cheaper to achieve a truce and put a stop to hostilities now in return for the legalization of  ‘Novorossiya,’ ”  Illarionov says.

 

According to the expert, agreement to such conditions on the part of the Ukrainian leadership would have disastrous consequences for the entire Ukrainian state.

 

“I honestly do not know whether Poroshenko and the Ukrainian leadership are ready for such an exchange. But I think that it would have catastrophic consequences both for the Ukrainian state and for the political careers of Ukrainian leaders,” Illarionov says.

 

“Putin will not compromise and is increasing the stakes on the eve of the meeting. He needs a truce in exchange for ‘Novorossiya,’ like in Transnistria,” adds Illarionov.

Ukraine - BREAKING NEWS - 1300 CET 25.08.14

-- Ukraine says its border guards have attacked a convoy of "dozens" of armored vehicles and tanks that Kyiv says entered its territory from Russia near the Azov Sea. A spokesman said the separatist column crossed in an area close to the city of Mariupol in the Donetsk region. "The convoy has been stopped by border guards," he said. "The battle is ongoing."

-- Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says Russia plans to send a second humanitarian aid convoy to Ukraine. Lavrov told reporters that Russia had informed Ukraine of its intention and hoped for full cooperation from Kyiv.

-- Lavrov also said he saw nothing humiliating in publicly parading Ukrainian prisoners through the streets of Donetsk over the weekend. The move was criticized by rights organizations as a violation of the Geneva Convention.